139th (Northumberland) Battalion, CEF

The 139th (Northumberland) Battalion, CEF was a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. Based in Cobourg, Ontario, the unit began recruiting in late 1915 in Northumberland County. After sailing to England in September 1916, the battalion was absorbed into the 3rd and 36th Reserve Battalions on October 6, 1916. The 139th Battalion, CEF had one Officer Commanding: Lieut-Col. W. H. Floyd.

1.
World War I
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World War I, also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history and it was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. The war drew in all the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war, Italy, Japan, the trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. This set off a crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia. Within weeks, the powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world. On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July, the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia, Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise, and when this was refused, declared war on Russia on 1 August. Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France, after the German march on Paris was halted, what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition, with a trench line that changed little until 1917. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army was successful against the Austro-Hungarians, in November 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers, opening fronts in the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Sinai. In 1915, Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Romania joined the Allies in 1916, after a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918, the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives. By the end of the war or soon after, the German Empire, Russian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, national borders were redrawn, with several independent nations restored or created, and Germanys colonies were parceled out among the victors. During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the Big Four imposed their terms in a series of treaties, the League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict. This effort failed, and economic depression, renewed nationalism, weakened successor states, and feelings of humiliation eventually contributed to World War II. From the time of its start until the approach of World War II, at the time, it was also sometimes called the war to end war or the war to end all wars due to its then-unparalleled scale and devastation. In Canada, Macleans magazine in October 1914 wrote, Some wars name themselves, during the interwar period, the war was most often called the World War and the Great War in English-speaking countries. Will become the first world war in the sense of the word. These began in 1815, with the Holy Alliance between Prussia, Russia, and Austria, when Germany was united in 1871, Prussia became part of the new German nation. Soon after, in October 1873, German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors between the monarchs of Austria-Hungary, Russia and Germany

2.
Canadian Expeditionary Force
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The Canadian Expeditionary Force was the designation of the field force created by Canada for service overseas in the First World War. The force fielded several combat formations on the Western Front in France and Belgium, the Canadian Cavalry Brigade and the Canadian Independent Force, which were independent of the Canadian Corps, also fought on the Western Front. The CEF also had a reserve and training organization in England. The Germans went so far as to call them storm troopers for their combat efficiency. In August 1918, the CEFs Canadian Siberian Expeditionary Force travelled to revolution-torn Russia and it reinforced an anti-Bolshevik garrison in Vladivostok during the winter of 1918–19. At this time, another force of Canadian soldiers were placed in Archangel, the Canadian Expeditionary Force was mostly volunteers, as conscription was not enforced until the end of the war when call-ups began in January 1918. Ultimately, only 24,132 conscripts arrived in France before the end of the war, Canada was the senior Dominion in the British Empire and automatically at war with Germany upon the British declaration. According to Canadian historian Dr. Serge Durflinger at the Canadian War Museum, of the first contingent formed at Valcartier, Quebec in 1914, fully two-thirds were men born in the United Kingdom. By the end of the war in 1918, at least fifty per cent of the CEF consisted of British-born men, many British nationals from the United Kingdom or other territories who were resident in Canada also joined the CEF. As several CEF battalions were posted to the Bermuda Garrison before proceeding to France, although the Bermuda Militia Artillery and Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps both sent contingents to the Western Front, the first would not arrive there til June 1915. By then, many Bermudians had already been serving on the Western Front in the CEF for months, Bermudians in the CEF enlisted under the same terms as Canadians, and all male British Nationals resident in Canada became liable for conscription under the Military Service Act,1917. Two tank battalions were raised in 1918 but did not see service, most of the infantry battalions were broken up and used as reinforcements, with a total of fifty being used in the field, including the mounted rifle units, which were re-organized as infantry. The artillery and engineering units underwent significant re-organization as the war progressed, a distinct entity within the Canadian Expeditionary Force was the Canadian Machine Gun Corps. It consisted of several machine gun battalions, the Eatons, Yukon, and Borden Motor Machine Gun Batteries. During the summer of 1918, these units were consolidated into four machine gun battalions, the Canadian Corps with its four infantry divisions comprised the main fighting force of the CEF. The Canadian Cavalry Brigade also served in France, the 1915 Battle of Ypres, the first engagement of Canadian forces in the Great War, changed the Canadian perspective on war. Ypres exposed Canadian soldiers and their commanders to modern war and they had already experienced the effects of shellfire and developed a reputation for aggressive trench raiding despite their lack of formal training and generally inferior equipment. In April 1915, they were introduced to yet another facet of modern war, the Germans employed chlorine gas to create a hole in the French lines adjacent to the Canadian force and poured troops into the gap

3.
Cobourg
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Cobourg is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario 95 kilometres east of Toronto and 62 kilometres east of Oshawa. It is the largest town in and seat of Northumberland County and its nearest neighbour is Port Hope,7 km to the west. It is located along Highway 401 and the former Highway 2, to the south, Cobourg borders Lake Ontario. To the north, east and west, it is surrounded by Hamilton Township, the settlements that make up todays Cobourg were founded by United Empire Loyalists in 1798. Some of the fathers and early settlers were Eluid Nickerson, Joseph Ash, Zacheus Burnham. The Town was originally a group of villages such as Amherst and Hardscrabble. In 1808 it became the town for the Newcastle District. It was renamed Cobourg in 1818, in recognition of the marriage of Princess Charlotte Augusta of Wales to Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, by the 1830s Cobourg had become a regional centre, much due to its fine harbour on Lake Ontario. In 1835 the Upper Canada Academy was established in Cobourg by Egerton Ryerson, on July 1,1837, Cobourg was officially incorporated as a town. In 1841 the Upper Canada Academys name was changed to Victoria College, in 1842 Victoria College was granted powers to confer degrees. Victoria College remained in Cobourg until 1892, when it was moved to Toronto, in 1842, John Strachan founded the Diocesan Theological Institute in Cobourg, an Anglican seminary that became integrated into the University of Trinity College in Toronto in 1852. Victoria Hall was designed by architect Kivas Tully, the landmark is known for its impressive stone work. Charles Thomas Thomas, an English-born master stonecarver and building contractor, executed the fine stone carvings, Victoria Hall was officially opened in 1860 by the Prince of Wales, later to become Edward VII of the United Kingdom, King Edward VII. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, wealthy Americans built enormous summer homes there, one notable home, on King Street East, became the Brookside School - now a youth detention centre. A major ferry service connected Cobourg and Rochester, New York from 1907 to 1952, transporting passengers and cargo across Lake Ontario, the Cobourg and Peterborough Railway ran northward over Rice Lake to Peterborough, but the lines collapsed into Rice Lake in the late 1800s. After World War II and the advent of improved transportation technology, on December 20,1951, Cobourg experienced media attention as a Curtiss C-46 Commando crash landed in local farmer Charles Wilsons field. Cobourg was the site of No.26 Ordnance Depot, later Canadian Forces Station Cobourg, throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, the town invested heavily in purchasing property along the waterfront and beautifying the area. A boardwalk was developed to connect the harbour and large sandy beach while further pathways were created to encompass Victoria Park, because of this renewal and revitalization, many community activities now revolve in and around these spaces